email400.xml

email400.xml

born-digital

email

unknown

yes

2002-08-19

Hi E.,

Thanks for the update on your life. I am OK and still in Saudi Arabia. I do feel quite safe here, safer then back home. The Saudis have rather harsh punishments for crime--they cut off body parts. You will lose a hand for stealing and your head for killing. They don't mess around. It's a pretty effective deterrent.
I am enjoying my experience out here. I'll have to fill you in more later when I have more time to write. I expect to stay here atleast another 16 months. However, don't worry, if I ever feel my life is threatened, I'll be outta here. Really, I am quite safe.

I suspect that we have lost our Tom P, our class historian. Let me know as soon as you are sure and how to get in touch with his family to send along my condolences.
I am fortuntate that my family members were not harmed. My parents live 30 minutes from NYC and my Aunt, although in the city on the day of attack, was safe. My co-workers from ... who worked in the WTC have all been safely accounted for. I am close with two of them.

I am off to Germany tomorrow.
More later. Keep me posted,

R.
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Hi R.,

I wanted to try and reach you now that things are less frantic and make sure that you are OK. Are you still in Saudi Arabia? As much as I am sure that would have been a fascinating experience, I must admit that I hope you are
back in the states, or at least on your way back.

Everyone is fine here - except for being buzzed by F16's daily...

R., I don't know how closely you've been in contact with ... or any of the people from high school this week, but I wanted to let you know that I've heard that Tom P. from our class was on board the American airlines flight that crashed into the WTC. I woke up this morning and turned on CNN and they had his name, along with all of the other passengers, running in a ticker. It was one of the most horrible things I had ever seen - to see his name just scroll across the screen, followed by so many others. The age was correct, the flight originated in Boston and it said he was a camera man for Fox Sports. Considering how he always ran around senior year with a video recorder attached to his shoulder.... well let's say I have very few doubts as to whether or not there could be two Tom P.'s who would fit that bill. M. is trying to confirm it for me. I will let you know anything I hear from her, of course.

Please drop me a line when you have a chance and let me know what is going on. I'd really like to make sure that we still keep in touch. Take care of yourself.

E.

September 13 and September 15, 2001

Hello and How Are You